Zambia
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Overview
School girls read in a small group in a primary school in Zambia.
© Dan Petrescu/GPE
With an estimated population of 13.9 million, Zambia has experienced more than a decade of strong economic growth and was recently reclassified as a lower middle-income economy. Zambia ranks 163rd out of 186 countries in the 2013 UNDP Human Development Index. The annual economic growth averaged about 6% over the past decade.
Zambia joined GPE in 2008 based on its 2008-2010 Education Sector Plan. The country faces many challenges due to high incidence of HIV/AIDS among teachers and students and the poorly equipped community schools. Zambia's test scores in reading and math in the Southern and Eastern African Consortium for Measuring Educational Quality are low.
Zambia is currently implementing its 2011-2015 Education Sector Plan which seeks to expand early childhood education, re-introduce free basic education, promote equitable access, enhance human capital for economic development, and upgrade teacher qualifications to meet minimum standards.
GPE principles help Zambia and its education partners better coordinate their efforts to achieve results. The Government leads the Local Education Group formed with the education partners. Civil society organizations are represented through the Zambia National Education Consortium.
In 2009, Zambia received a $60 million grant from GPE. The Netherlands was the Supervising Entity and used a sector pooled fund for the grant. Irish Aid, Denmark and USAID also contributed to the pooled fund.
Since 2008, Zambia has increased its enrollment rate in primary education and has reached a gender parity index of 0.97 in Grade 1 (2009). The primary completion rate has risen sharply to reach 91.7% in 2009. The government recognized primary community schools and has supported them financially since 2011. The youth literacy rate decreased by one point from 75% to 74% from 2009 to 2010. In Zambia, 64.2% of children who finish primary school enroll in secondary school.
Education Indicators
Out-of-School Children (%)
Number of children of official primary school age who are not enrolled in primary or secondary school, expressed as a percentage of the population of official primary school age. This indicator is intended to measure the size of the population in the official primary school age range that should be targeted by policies and efforts to achieve universal primary education. Country-specific definition, method and targets are determined by countries themselves.
Data were collected from national and other publicly available sources, and validated by the Local Education Group (LEG) in each country. LEGs are typically led by the Ministry of Education and include development partners and other education stakeholders. Data were not processed or analyzed by the Global Partnership for Education. It is reported as it was presented in the original sources, or as it was communicated to us through the Coordinating Agency or Lead Donor of the LEG.
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Primary Completion Rate (%)
The Primary Completion Rate (PCR) is the percentage of pupils who completed the last year of primary schooling. It is computed by dividing the total number of students in the last grade of primary school minus repeaters in that grade, divided by the total number of children of official completing age. Country-specific definition, method and targets are determined by countries themselves.
Data were collected from national and other publicly available sources, and validated by the Local Education Group (LEG) in each country. LEGs are typically led by the Ministry of Education and include development partners and other education stakeholders. Data were not processed or analyzed by the Global Partnership for Education. It is reported as it was presented in the original sources, or as it was communicated to us through the Coordinating Agency or Lead Donor of the LEG.
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(Million)
Total Primary-School Students (Million)
Total population of pupils in primary school, regardless of age. Country-specific definition, method and targets are determined by countries themselves.
Data were collected from national and other publicly available sources, and validated by the Local Education Group (LEG) in each country. LEGs are typically led by the Ministry of Education and include development partners and other education stakeholders. Data were not processed or analyzed by the Global Partnership for Education. It is reported as it was presented in the original sources, or as it was communicated to us through the Coordinating Agency or Lead Donor of the LEG.
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(Thousand)
Total Primary-School Teachers (Thousand)
Persons employed in an official capacity to guide and direct the learning experience of pupils in primary school, excluding educational personnel who have no active teaching duties. Country-specific definition, method and targets are determined by countries themselves.
Data were collected from national and other publicly available sources, and validated by the Local Education Group (LEG) in each country. LEGs are typically led by the Ministry of Education and include development partners and other education stakeholders. Data were not processed or analyzed by the Global Partnership for Education. It is reported as it was presented in the original sources, or as it was communicated to us through the Coordinating Agency or Lead Donor of the LEG.
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Rate
Youth Literacy Rate
The number of persons aged 15 to 24 years who can both read and write with understanding a short simple statement on their everyday life, divided by the population in that age group. Generally, 'literacy' also encompasses 'numeracy', the ability to make simple arithmetic calculations. For further country-specific definition details please refer to the source of information, the UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS): www.uis.unesco.org
Source of information: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (www.uis.unesco.org). Please refer to its website for country-specific details on the specific national data sources and method used.
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| 74% | 2010 | |
| 75% | 2009 | |
for Primary Completion Rate
Gender Parity Index for Primary Completion Rate
Ratio of female to male values of Primary Completion Rate. Country-specific definition, method and targets are determined by countries themselves.
Data were collected from national and other publicly available sources, and validated by the Local Education Group (LEG) in each country. LEGs are typically led by the Ministry of Education and include development partners and other education stakeholders. Data were not processed or analyzed by the Global Partnership for Education. It is reported as it was presented in the original sources, or as it was communicated to us through the Coordinating Agency or Lead Donor of the LEG.
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NO DATA AVAILABLE |
Domestic Financing
as % of Total Public Spending
Public Spending on Total Education as % of Total Public Spending
Public expenses devoted to the education sector, including recurrent and capital expenditures and teacher salaries, expressed as a percentage of the total general government expenses. Country-specific definition, method and targets are determined by countries themselves.
Data were collected from national and other publicly available sources, and validated by the Local Education Group (LEG) in each country. LEGs are typically led by the Ministry of Education and include development partners and other education stakeholders. Data were not processed or analyzed by the Global Partnership for Education. It is reported as it was presented in the original sources, or as it was communicated to us through the Coordinating Agency or Lead Donor of the LEG.
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as % of Total Education Spending
Basic Education as % of Total Education Spending
Public expenses devoted to the basic education sector, including recurrent and capital expenditures and teacher salaries, expressed as a percentage of the public spending on total education. Country-specific definition, method and targets are determined by countries themselves.
Data were collected from national and other publicly available sources, and validated by the Local Education Group (LEG) in each country. LEGs are typically led by the Ministry of Education and include development partners and other education stakeholders. Data were not processed or analyzed by the Global Partnership for Education. It is reported as it was presented in the original sources, or as it was communicated to us through the Coordinating Agency or Lead Donor of the LEG.
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External Aid
Aid Disbursement for Total Education (US$ Million)
Sum of international concessional aid disbursed by reporting development partners (donors) to the total education sector in a specific developing country. Targets indicate the sum of the scheduled or projected aid. Accounted aid includes activities, projects, technical cooperation and sector and budget support (20%), as it was reported by donors to the Global Partnership for Education.
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AT A GLANCE
GPE FUNDING
Key Documents
Local Education Group
Local Education Group
A Local Education Group (LEG) is a forum of stakeholders within the education sector who develop, implement, monitor and evaluate education sector plans. All member countries of the Global Partnership have a LEG. They are led by the national government, and are composed of education development partners such as donors and development agencies, teachers' organizations, civil society organizations, and private education providers. Nonetheless, the specific composition, title, and working arrangements of a LEG vary from country to country.